Mickle aims to begin production in early 2025
© Sunrise, Legendary
Entertainment news website Deadline reported Thursday that Sweet Tooth showrunner Jim Mickle is writing and directing Sunrise and Legendary Pictures' Gundunda live-action film. He is producing the film with partner Linda Moran through their company Nightshade. The team plans to begin production in early 2025.
Jordan Vogt-Roberts (Kong: Skull Island) was previously announced as director and executive producer for the film, as was comic book writer Brian K. Vaughan (Y: The Last Man, Ex Machina, Runaways ) was originally slated to write and executive produce. Makoto Asanuma was previously named executive producer. Mary Parent (vice president of Global Production for Legendary), Legendary's Cale Boyter (producer of Pokémon Detective Pikachu and Dune) and Sunrise's Naohiroshi Ogata are attached to produce. Netflix was previously announced to stream the film worldwide and shared concept art (pictured right) in November 2021.
Boyter appeared with Bandai Namco Holdings president and representative director Mitsuaki Taguchi at Anime Expo in July 2018 to announce the adaptation. Robert Napton, former Chief Marketing Officer and current Vice President of Publishing for Bandai Entertainment and Legendary Comics, moderated the panel segment on the live-action project.
Napton and Sunrise Executive Producer Ken Iyadomi revealed during a panel at the Project Anime industry showcase in March 2019, that the appearance of the anime character Unicorn Unicorn in Pacific Rim: Uprise was helped create a relationship between Sunrise and Legendary Pictures, and set the scene for discussions about the Gundunda film project. Iyadomi said that although contacting the right person to make a deal was difficult, Sunrise's CEO was very convincing. Another factor that makes negotiations easier is that Legendary has fewer people so decisions can be made faster.
The “Franchise Franchise New Work Launch” event in April 2018 listed a tentative title as Mobile Suit GTA UC2 (Kidō Senshi Gunma Project UC2) which will have the form of “overseas drama” . The listing said the project took place on Perpetual Calendar 0104 and would launch in 2022. After showing off the listing at the April 2018 event, Sunrise Studio's host and one of the event's guests lawsuit, Unicorn Unicorn novelist Harutoshi Fukui quickly told the audience to “pretend you didn't see” the image.
Source: Deadline
a> (Justin Kroll)
Disclosure: Bandai Namco Filmworks Inc. (Sunrise) is a minority, non-controlling shareholder in Anime News Network Inc.
